1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a corner guard for protecting the corners of walls in institutional facilities, and relates in particular to a multi-colored, co-extruded corner guard.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
In institutional facilities such as hospitals, elderly care centers, and other public buildings, the corner of building walls are exposed to damage from impact resulting from forceful contact with various kinds of wheeled vehicles, such as stretchers, wheelchairs, dining carts and the like. For this reason, the corners of the building wall are commonly provided with a corner guard that will protect the wall surfaces from damage resulting from the impact.
Conventional corner guards are normally comprised of an elongated plastic member that is angled to fit over the corner formed by the intersection of two walls. The corner guard may be fastened to the wall with an adhesive, such as double-sided adhesive tape. Alternatively, the corner guard may be comprised of an assembly that includes a base plate which overlays the wall surfaces at the corner, and further includes a cover member that is attached over the base plate. For both the adhesive and mounted types of corner guards, the outer plastic corner guard member from damage due to impacts by wheeled carts and that like that occasionally hit the walls and corners of hallways.
Examples of conventional corner guard assemblies include the devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,968 issued to Robert W. Olsen, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,883 issued to Claude P. Balzer et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,617 issued to Donald W. Miller.
Conventional corner guards and corner guard assemblies are typically manufactured by extruding a plastic resin into long pieces of a desired shape and color. Thus, conventional corner guards are comprised of a single grade and color of plastic material. Such single color corner guards are commonly considered bland and aesthetically undesirable. There is of course a continual demand to improve upon the aesthetic features and interior design of living and work spaces. Additionally, in hospitals and other large institutional facilities, the hallways are often color-coded to designate particular departments and locations within the building. The color-coding of hallways also provides a means of directional marking to assist users and visitors traversing through the building. Single-color corner guards, however, conform to the color scheme of one hallway or the other, but normally not both.
Accordingly, a corner guard that has improved aesthetic qualities and that will enhance the color-coding schemes of large institutional facilities is desired.
An improved corner guard designed especially for use in institutional type facilities is presented. The corner guard of the present invention includes an elongated vinyl corner member angled to fit over the corner formed by the intersection of two wall surfaces, the corner member being comprised of two different colors of vinyl plastic material that have been co-extruded to form a single, integrated product. The corner guard of the present invention provides an aesthetically improved corner guard that may be used in a much wider range of interior designs. Additionally, the improved corner guard disclosed herein may be used a part of a system of color-coding the hallways of a large hospital or other institutional facility. The corner guard of the present invention may be constructed as either a tape-on corner guard that is mounted by an adhesive directly to the wall surfaces, or constructed as an assembly comprised of a base plate and cover guard.
The present invention protects the corner of intersecting hallways from impacts and collisions, provides a visual enhancement to the interior design of buildings, and provides a multi-colored component for use in the color-coding of hallways and passageways in buildings. Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which, together with the accompanying drawings, sets forth by way of illustration and example certain preferred embodiments of the present invention.